Mail catching and delivering apparatus.



F. MATHEWS. MAIL CATCHING AND DELIVERING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 12. I914. 1,217,478. Patented Feb. 27,1917.

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F. MATHEWS. MAIL CATCHING AND DELIVERING APPARATUS.

W I v\ k. 1] H (All i IHNH I 1D L e T F n m um m M m N. w m m a Q N M M Wu 0 Q. W o m o a A M N A I 1 NW1 W k u q 7 1 m. 2, SE: MN 1 FRANK MATHEWS, 'OF WINNIPEG, MANITOBA, CANADA.

MAIL CATCHING AND DELIVERING APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb.2'?,1917.

Application filed February 12, 1914. Serial No. 818,328.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, FRANK MATHEWS, subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at "Winnipeg, in the Province of'Manitoba and Dominion of Canada, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Mail Catching and Delivering Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to an improved mail bag catching and delivering apparatus, and it resides generally in the production of an extremely simple and efficient apparatus by means of which the simultaneous transfer of the mail bags from a moving train to the receiving station, and from the latter to the train may be automatically accomplished.

The above and additional objects are accomplished by such means as are illustrated in their preferred embodiment in the accompanying drawings, described in the following specification and then more particularly pointed out in the claim which is appended hereto and forms a part of this application. I

In describing my invention in detail reference will be had to the accompanying drawings wherein like characters denote like or corresponding parts throughout the several views, and in which Figure 1 is a side elevation, illustrating the arrangement of the several parts, comprising the present' invention, -as they appear just prior to the transfer of the mail matter acted upon; 2

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the mechanism comprising the present invention, the mail matter acted upon having been transferred;

Fig. 3 is a detail perspective view illustrating the manner in which the mail bags are attached to the support.

Referring now to the drawings wherein is illustrated the preferred embodiment of my invention the numeral 1 designates, as an entirety, the mail car, and 2, in a like manner, the receiving station. The car 1 is provided with the usual door opening 3, one side of which is longitudinally slotted as at 4 to provide for the movement of the crane, designated 5, into and out of operative position.

Upon the exterior of the car 1, and at a point adjacent the slot 4 therein, is secured a supporting bracket 6, within which a vertically extending crane support or shaft 7 is journaled, the latter terminating at its upper extremity at a point upon the same plane as the slot 4. Secured to the shaft 7, and extending at right angles thereto, I provide an arm 8 terminating at its free end in an integrally formed collar 9 through -which the shank 10 of the depending mail bag support member extends. A removable pin 11 extends transversely of the collar 9 and provides for the retention of the support member immovable with respect thereto. 'The shank 10 is provided with rightangled extensions 12 and 13 respectively, the former providing a support for the mail bag acted upon previous to its transfer to the receiving station 2, the latter forming asupport for the mail bag acted upon after its transfer from the receiving station 2 to the moving train. A leaf spring 14: is secured to the shank 10 of the mail bag sup port member and is disposed for engage-- ment with the extension 12 to retain the mail bag acted upon thereupon until forcibly removed in a manner to be hereinafter fully described. The upper face of the extension 13 is serrated as indicated at 14 to provide for the retension of the mail bag acted upon after transfer.

Any suitable means may be provided to bodily swing the crane 5 from an operative positionto an inoperative position. To support the crane 5 rigid with respect to the car 1 during a mailtransferring operation,

and to limit movement thereof, 1 provide a lug 22, formed integrally with the shaft 7,

the same being disposed for engagement with the side of the car 1 as is illustrated to advantage in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings.

Coming now tothe detail description of the receiving station, the same comprises a suitable support 23 having fixedly secured thereto as at 24 an upwardly inclined arm 25, the free end of which is disposed in a plane slightly below the plane of the extension 13 above referred to. The arm 25 serves as a support for upon previous to its transfer on to the said extension 13. Upon the opposite side of the receiving station from that upon which the arm 25 is secured, and substantially alined with the said arm so as to be down-' the mail bag acted from the extension 12 of the crane 5, the said arm 26 being disposed in aplane slightly below the plane of the arm 12 to act upon the mail bag suspended therefrom in the de-' instance subsequent to the transfer of themail matter acted upon. A band or ring 31 is provided to serve as a support for the mail bag, the same being connected to the ring 80 through the medium of strips 32 formed integrally therewith. Hooks are secured. to the mail bag and disposed to overlap the band 31 to suspend the mail bag therefrom.

Having described fully the construction and arrangement of the several parts comprising the transferring apparatus, it now remains to set forth a little more in detail the operation thereof. When it'is desired that the mail matter acted upon should be automatically transferred from the receiv ing station to a moving train, or vice versa, one of the mail bags to be acted upon is first supported by the arm 25, the latter passing through the smaller ring 28 of the support ing elem nt to position the larger ring 29 thereabove and in the path of the extension 13. The other mail bag acted upon is sus pended from the extension'12, upon which it is retained by the leaf spring 14:, by passing the said extension through the larger ring 29, the latter supporting the smaller ring 28 in the path of the arm 26 of the receiving station. This arrangement of the mail bags will provide, as the train passes the receiving station, for the automatic transfer of the mail matter, the arm 13 engaging the larger ring of one of the mail bag supporting elements, and the arm 26 engaging the smaller ring of the other of the mail bag supporting elements, the serrations 14 in one instance, and the extension 27 in the other instance, serving to maintain the mail matter, after transfer, upon the respective supports provided therefor. After transfer, the hand wheel 21' is actuated, and the crane 5 swung into the interior of the car 1 where the mail bags transferred may be removed and a second mail bag properly placed to provide for a second transfer of mail matter at the next receiving station.

In reduction to practice, I have found that the form of my invention, illustrated in the drawings and referred to in the above description, as the preferred. embodiment, is the most efiicient and practical; yet ing that the conditions concurrent with the adoption of my device will necessarily vary, ii. desire to cu'iphasize the fact that various ll'lllIOl changes in details of constructim, proportion and arrangement of parts may be resorted 1o, when requ' :l, without a [icing any of the advantagesof my l.i1VQiltion, as defined in the appended claim.

Having thus fully des ribed my invention, what 1 claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

Support means for a mail bag consisting of a band directly engageable with the mail bag to be transferred, means detachably fastening the bag to the band, strips integral with the band at substantially diametrically opposite points, and a pair of substantially rectangular rings integral with the strips and disposed one above the other, one of the said rings serving as a support for the mail bag before transfer and the other of the said rings serving as a support for the mail. bag subsequent to transfer, as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

I FRANK MATHEWS.

Witnesses J. A. McVIcA, A. L. MARsnALL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G. V 

